Can God Create a Rock So Heavy He Can't Lift It? - Can God Truly Be Omnipotent?by Rich Deem

Introduction

Is God really omnipotent?

Can God create a spherical triangle?
Can God create a rock so heavy He can't lift it? Can God think of a
time when He was not omnipotent? Atheists claim that any answer to
any of these questions means that God cannot be omnipotent and,
therefore, the God of the Bible does not exist. On the surface, the
questions sound convincing. However, we will find that these
questions are a form of the kind of question such as "Have you
stopped beating your wife?"

Rich Deem

The topic of omnipotence (the ability of God to do anything, i.e., God is
all-powerful) is frequently
cited by atheists as proof that the God of the Bible cannot exist. The claim
has been made that if there is anything that God cannot do, then God
cannot be omnipotent and, therefore, does not exist.

Is the God of the Bible omnipotent?

The word "omnipotent" is never used in the Bible,
but has been inferred primarily by one of God's Hebrew titles, "Shadday,"
which is most often translated "almighty."1 However, the Bible never
claims that God can do all things. In fact, the Bible makes a point that there
are things that God cannot do. The Bible says that God cannot commit sin.2 God cannot lie.3 Therefore, biblical omnipotence does
not mean that God can do all things. God cannot do anything that is contrary
to His holy character. However, God can do anything that He determines to do.
This is a true meaning of omnipotence - the ability to do anything that one
sets out to do.

Specific arguments against omnipotence

Some of the arguments against omnipotence are plain silly and stupid. Can God create a
spherical triangle? Saying that omnipotence
requires the ability to do logically impossible things is stupid. God cannot
turn truth into a lie. If humans define a triangle as a two dimensional object
formed by the intersection of three lines, it makes no sense to ask if God
could make one that was spherical. When one says that God is all-powerful, one
means that God is able to accomplish all that He desires to do. Even an all-powerful being cannot
do what is impossible by definition. God can do many things that are humanly
impossible. However, there are some things that even an all-powerful being
cannot do.

Can God create a rock He cannot lift? Since an all-powerful being will
always be able to accomplish whatever He sets out to do, it is impossible for
an all-powerful being to fail. The above atheistic argument is arguing that
since God is all-powerful He can do anything - even fail. This is like saying
that since God is all-powerful He can be not all-powerful. Obviously, this is
absurd. An all-powerful being cannot fail. Therefore, God can create a rock of
tremendous size, but, since He is all-powerful, He will always be able to lift
it. The ability to fail is not a part of omnipotence. The Bible makes it clear
that God is able to do anything He wants to, and that nothing He wants to do
is too difficult for Him to accomplish.4 This is
the true meaning of omnipotence.

Could God think of a time
when He was not omnipotent? If He can't think of it, He isn't omnipotent, but if
He does think of it then there was a time when He wasn't omnipotent? This
question is quite similar to the rock question above. The answer, of course,
is that God can never think of a time when He wasn't omnipotent. God has
always been omnipotent. His inability to contradict His divine character does
not mean that He isn't omnipotent.

Conclusion

The atheist distorts the biblical definition of omnipotence in order to
"prove" that God cannot exist. Contrary to their claims, omnipotence
does not include the ability to do things that are, by definition, impossible.
Neither does omnipotence include the ability to fail. By defining omnipotence
as requiring one to have the ability to fail, atheists have defined
omnipotence as being impossible. Of course, an omnipotent God would never
fail.

These kinds of arguments are clearly illogical and even silly, although
they are commonly used by inexperienced atheists. Most intelligent atheists
have dropped these kinds of arguments long ago.

References

Part of Speech: noun masculine deity
A Related Word by BDB/Strong's Number: from H7703Same Word by TWOT Number: 2333

Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am being
tempted by God"; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does
not tempt anyone. (James 1:13)

in the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie,
promised long ages ago, (Titus 1:2)

"Is anything too difficult for the LORD? At the appointed time I will
return to you, at this time next year, and Sarah will have a son." (Genesis
18:14)
'Ah Lord GOD! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great
power and by Your outstretched arm! Nothing is too difficult for You, (Jeremiah
32:17)
"Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh; is anything too difficult for
Me?" (Jeremiah 32:27)